HOMELAND SECURITY: Practicing for emergencies

All branches and organizational areas of the Bundeswehr must regularly practice their capabilities to be deployment- and defense-ready in case of emergency. The Army practices most frequently, simply due to its personnel strength of around 60,000 soldiers. This was the final exercise of recruits from Homeland Regiment 2 at the Münster-Handorf training area.

A large part of the exercises take place at the training areas of the Territorial Command of the Bundeswehr. In addition to the larger training areas, there are smaller site training areas. They are usually located in direct proximity to the military bases and offer the units stationed there diverse, even short-term, training opportunities.

The training areas are important for the training and education of all Bundeswehr soldiers - especially in light of the renewed focus on national and alliance defense. One of these site training areas is located in Münster-Handorf in North Rhine-Westphalia.

In early March, 30 soldiers from Homeland Regiment 2 demonstrated what they had learned during the special basic training "Homeland Defense". The women and men knew that a night in bivouac was part of the training, as was getting little sleep. However, they were surprised to find out that they had to pack up and erase all traces of the bivouac before dawn. The scenario for their exercise was that after the fictional attack on a NATO state, the alliance had been invoked several weeks ago and all Homeland Regiments nationwide had been put on high alert. Their task: protecting barracks and defense-critical infrastructure in the rear area, that is, in what was still peaceful Germany.

“I have been in the Homeland Regiment since October 2023, I was previously in regular basic training,” says Master Sergeant Jens M. “The women and men are incredibly motivated in the special basic training and working with them is truly enjoyable.” However, there are also significant challenges for the trainers. “We are also preparing for operations against irregular forces, in an otherwise peaceful environment. You have to clearly distinguish who really wants to engage with us and who is just an innocent civilian.”

The special basic training "Homeland Defense", abbreviated as SGA, follows the three-month general basic training. Here, all learned content and skills are deepened and expanded. In the training company of Homeland Regiment 2 in Münster, the SGA begins with three weeks of intensive shooting training. Lessons in weapon and equipment knowledge for the G36 rifle, P8 pistol, MG3 machine gun, and the bazooka alternate with days on the firing range. Object protection, combat service, area surveillance, medical service, and field life are practiced. The soldiers regularly spend the night at the training area. All learned skills are tested in a final exercise. After the three-month SGA, the future homeland defense forces are familiarized with the work of various civilian emergency services.

After completing the exercise unit, the leader and the group leader evaluate the performances. They praise the quick reaction to the appearance of irregular fighters, the follow-up of orders, and the focus on their own tasks. Communication should be improved. The "small combat talk"- the mutual agreements in the positions - can still be enhanced. Overall, though: "Great performance."

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